Chapter 5

Prison

A/N: There seem to be some people reading this story that have not read the other Shaiya Chronicles. So here are some points that will clarify some things.

The term "Shaiya" has two meanings. If it is uncapitalized (shaiya), it is the general term Pokemon. Capitalized (Shaiya), it is the term for the person that can change into Pokemon.

Feuer, a Chimchar, was the Shaiya before Sam and Sam's mate. When humans tried to take their home, he slaughtered the whole group of them, but was killed in the process. Sam then gained part of Feuer's power and became the Shaiya.

If you are enjoying this story and want the whole back-story, check out the whole Shaiya Chronicles series, labeled in my profile.

"Where am I? Why is it so cold?"

Sam couldn't see. She couldn't feel anything besides the chill. The place seemed to press in on her from every angle.

Something materialized in front of her. It was a man, around her height. He was in jeans and a red jacket. Orange hair flared up from his head. He spoke softly, "Sam."

She didn't recognize him. But then she looked deep into his eyes. "Feuer?"

"You must be strong, Sam. Remember, I am always with you." He started to float away.

"Wait, Feuer! Don't leave me again!"

"It's time for you to wake up, Sam. Wake up."

"Feuer!"

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"Sam, wake up."

Her eyes finally came open. Luca was hovering over her, beyond him a metal grey ceiling. Something was creating a loud, rhythmic banging from close by.

He helped pull her up to a sitting position. Now that she was up, she could see where she was. It was a cage. Three sides were solid metal. The other side was a collection of metal bars. A Buizel was throwing punch after punch into the bars, which was the source of the bang. "Where are we?"

"I have no clue. I just woke up here. And the Buizel won't stop long enough to talk."

She pushed herself over to the bars. They were a few feet off the ground. Cages lined both sides of a walkway. Pokemon filled almost every space. "This can't be good."

The Buizel next to her stopped and fell back, its breath heavy. "You're at…the Team Rocket…base."

They both looked at him. "Are you serious?"

He simply nodded his head.

Luca went to the back and sat down. "They must have gotten us when we weren't paying attention."

The Buizel wouldn't stop looking at Sam. It was starting to make her a little self-conscious when he asked, "You're the Shaiya, aren't you?"

"Y…yes."

He shook his head. "Then they've finally gotten it."

"What have they got?" Luca asked.

"This is a very special research facility. Roth has been trying to create Halflings like you." He pointed at Luca. "He hasn't succeeded in years. But they kept saying they needed one person: the Shaiya. Something about your blood would complete their research."

"Well, they won't get her blood, then. Simple as that."

"They've already gotten her blood. They drew some when you were both still out. I'd guess Roth is already piecing everything together."

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The scientist was nearly drooling over his keyboard. The results had just come through the system. "This is it. We've finally got it!" He practically leapt into the air. Most of the other scientists joined him.

Braun didn't.

"Well done, Braun."

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"What are they planning to do with this?" Luca asked. "So they change a few Pokemon. What's the big deal?"

Buizel shrugged. "Only Roth really knows that. But it's not just a few shaiyas. Rumor through the cages is that he's planning on spreading it through the whole world, shaiyas and humans."

There was a moment of silence as the revelation sank in. Luca had always had a belief that what he had was not a curse. But having it spread to the entire planet may end up becoming one. Who knew what kind of repercussions it would have? Maybe that was Roth's plan. "We have to stop him."

"But we have to get out of here," Sam replied sadly. Her voice still wavered with slight fear.

Luca stood, or crouched, the ceilings weren't very high, and moved over to examine the bars. "If you were an Eevee, you could fit through these bars, couldn't you?"

She placed a hand against the cold metal, judging it. "Maybe. It's worth a try." She focused on her body. But as soon as she started to feel herself change, a pulse of energy shot through her, forcing her out of the transition. She gasped suddenly as her muscles momentarily froze. And then the sensation was gone, as if it had never been there.

Luca put a hand to her shoulder. "You ok?"

"I don't know." She checked her hand. Still human. "Something stopped me."

"Probably the energy field," the Buizel said as he stood to his feet. "It stops any shaiya from using special powers."

"Then how are we supposed to get out of here?"

He stepped back up to the bars. "The old fashioned way." He pulled back his arms and resumed punching the bars.

Luca couldn't help but admire him. That had to hurt, and yet he went on anyway. "What's your name?"

He paused just long enough to turn and say, "Wasser."

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Braun stayed until they popped the champagne. He had had enough of their celebration; there were more important things to do.

But as he turned to leave, Roth stopped him. "Braun, I expect you to turn in your Hunter equipment by tomorrow morning."

He stopped and turned. "Excuse me?"

"Your equipment. Be sure to turn it in."

"But I caught her," he stumbled without thinking. "You said I would be raised to Hunter!"

"I said you would be raised to Hunter for one week. I never said you would stay there."

He was left dumbstruck. Roth had played him like a fiddle.

But what surprised him most was that he had actually fallen for it. Braun had enough training to easily see when someone was lying. But Roth had completely slipped his radar. Very few could deceive Braun, and none could do it so cleanly.

Roth had always been strange, but something about him was wrong.

And yet Braun could do nothing about it. Roth was his superior. Instead, he forced his anger down into his clenched fist. So much so that he could swear he felt blood.

He glared into the man's eye a second longer before leaving. As he walked though the halls, he pulled out his cell and hit speed dial 2. The other side answered, "Yes, sir?"

"I've got a special job for you, Phil."

There's more than one way to get even.

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Luca's respect for Wasser grew with each passing minute. The Buizel's hands were hardly recognizable any more. Blood soaked the bars and pooled onto the floor. And yet still he hammered at the bars. When he finally backed off, a section of the bars had actually started to bend outward. But it still wasn't enough.

Wasser fell backwards and cringed as he tried to move his hands. "I can't do any more."

"You tried," Luca said solemnly. "That's really all that matters."

"It looks like we aren't going anywhere." Sam laid her head onto her arms, which were propped across her bent legs.

A door slid open in the hall with a hiss. Several shaiyas in the nearby cages began to scream and pound the bars as someone walked inside. The person stopped and crouched in front of their cage. He was in a uniform quite different from the rest. His outfit was entirely black except for grayish segments at the shoulders. He looked to be in better shape than the other Rocket members she remembered, as well.

He slipped a piece of paper between the bars. "There is a shift change in one hour, seven minutes. The lights will flash. Then you will have exactly two minutes and thirty seconds to leave by this route." He pressed a code into the wall next to the bars and rose to leave.

"Wait!" Sam was the first to the bars. She pressed against them, trying to get a good view. But they suddenly swung outward, causing her to nearly fall out into the hall. Luca pulled her back just in time. "Why are you letting us go?"

The man stopped. "Roth will not give me what I want. So he will not have what he wants. Stay low until the shift." He walked through the door and it hissed closed.

She wanted to follow him, to escape now, but Luca pulled the bars towards them. The hall suddenly became quiet once again.

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Braun flipped his cell. "What's the status?"

"The brain is gone, eyes are open." Translated, "The files have been deleted, the cameras are back online."

"Good work. Cover your tracks and get out of there."

Roth had the mind of a genius, including photographic memory. Not having the blood samples in the computer system wouldn't stop him, but it would slow him down by a number of weeks. And he had now guaranteed that he wouldn't get any more samples.

Assuming they could get out. But that was their problem, not his.